Larry wrote in, asking for our opinion on the Jet JBTS-10MJS 10-inch jobsite table saw for home workshop use. While we haven’t reviewed that particular saw, we’re inclined not to recommend it for home use. Opposing opinions are most welcome.
The saw is priced at about $660 (via Amazon) and seems to be reasonably well equipped – for a jobsite saw.
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We scoured the web but couldn’t find too many in-depth reviews of the saw. That doesn’t mean it’s not a good saw, just that it’s not as popular as more mainstream brands such as Dewalt and Bosch.
For home use, our attention moves towards the Craftsman 21833, which is normally priced at $650. If you’re patient the saw sometimes goes on sale for as low as $580 with Craftsman Club discount.
Both saws are mobile, but the Jet is more portable, as you would want from a jobsite saw. The Jet weighs in at about 100 lbs, and the Craftsman 265 lbs. With the Craftsman you get a larger table and stouter frame.
User reviews for the Craftsman table saw are overall positive. I did have the chance to briefly use one about a year and a half ago, and it seemed to be a good option in the $500-$1000 price range.
We don’t ordinarily like to talk about one brand or product when asked about another, but in this case it seemed fitting. The reader didn’t mention why he was specifically looking at the Jet, but for home workshop use, it just doesn’t seem to be the best choice.
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Would you agree or disagree with our recommendation for the Craftsman over the Jet? Suggestions for other brands and models in the $500-$800 range are also welcome.
Craftsman 21833 (via Sears)
Nathan
The Rigid R4512 is made by the same company (Dayton) as the Craftsman 21833 and is almost an identical saw – the big differences are cosmetic (my Rigid is orange).
Home Depot will put the R4512 on sale for $499 and some stores will take a Harbor Freight 10% off coupon. Total cost would come to $450.
I really like my R4512. For the price I don’t think you could find anything better without getting lucky on CL.
Stuart
I did not know that, thanks for the info! The Ridgid looks to be $529 regularly priced, which seems pretty darn good if the internals are the same as the Craftsman.
It looks like there are a couple of noticeable differences in fence design, but perhaps not enough where one is better than the other.
jeff_williams
The spreader bar on the RIDGID is different and allows the addition of another extension wing. I built a router lift into mine. The RIDGID also has their lifetime service agreement. My HD let me use the 20% HF coupon. It used to be $499 in store and I got out the door for $400 plus tax a year ago. The Masterforce saw (from Menards) is also the same saw but in green.
mnoswad1
HD takes a coupon from another store for a product that they don’t even sell?
I understand price matching for the same product offered somewhere else, but I call shenanigans on this. Stu, is this something that you’ve actually seen before? Or just heard about? I cant imagine any HD that i’ve been to would go along with this.
Jon
Many HD stores will accept the Harbor Freight 20% off coupon because HF stores also sell power tools. The ones near me won’t take the coupon, even though there are HF stores near HD. You could also use a Lowe’s 10% off mover’s coupon, I’ve never had a HD or Menards reject those. (Menards won’t apply the 10% off to sale or clearance items, HD/Lowe’s will).
Stuart
Some will take it, some won’t. Lowes and Home Depot both accept competitors’ coupons, but there seem to be restrictions based on managers’ discretion.
A while back I was told at a local store (I don’t remember if it was HD or Lowes) that they only accepted mailed or personalized coupons due to widespread use of fraudulent ones printed from the web.
As far as their accepting of HF coupons, it depends on whether Lowes and HD managers view them as a competitor. It can be said that since HF does not sell the same products they are not a true competitor.
Porphyre
As an average-to-advanced hobby woodworker, I agree that jobsite saw are generally best left to the jobsite. EXCEPT in the case of tiny shops. My sister has a small basement in which she likes to do large things (models). She needs a table saw for ripping long stock but can’t justify the $500+ for a quality track saw. So she bought a Ridgid jobsite saw on sale for around $350 and folds it up and stores in behind a door when it’s not in use.
So, extreme space shortage is the only time I’d recommend a jobsite saw for home use. Stand-up “contractor” saws are that much better.
Stuart
I completely agree with you. But since the reader was asking about a large contractor saw, I figured that they were open to the idea of a less portable saw with a similar footprint.
The Bosch GTS1031 is exceptionally compact for small work spaces since it can be stored on its side as shown in the last photo of my review of it. The downside is that it does require a separate stand or mounting location, while folding saws are moved into place and ready to go a lot quicker.
TonyRockyTiger
How about the Bosch 4100-9? Jobsite saw with Bosch’s slick Gravity-Rise stand. Currently under $600 at Amazon.
Stuart
I haven’t reviewed that one either, but I know it has a very good reputation. Still, it is designed for jobsite use where portability is an important consideration.
The Craftsman and Ridgid saws are mobile, so they can be moved around a workshop or garage. For finer fixed-location woodworking, as opposed to construction needs, jobsite saws are generally not the best option.
Mike
I’ve got one of the rigid versions of the craftsman saw above and I really like it. It’s no unisaw but once you get it set up and use the right blade for the job it’ll do a good enough job for just about anything I wanted to do.
AndrewC
I purchased a jobsite saw for home garage use a few years ago. In retrospect, I wish I would have purchased a saw with a larger cutting capacity such as a contractor saw. Jobsite saws are fine for dealing with planks, but when you start talking about plywood, their capacity (16-22in) is very limiting, and I find my self using my circular saw as much as the table saw when I need to cut plywood.
So, get the table saw with the largest table size and rip capacity you have room for. After that, I wouldn’t sweat too much about details such as motor size, noise, etc.- save that for professional cabinet makers. Any saw should be able to provide good cuts if you upgrade to a decent sawblade (some saws come with crappy blades) and calibrate/adjust the table once you get it.
John Sullivan
Stuart’s advice is very sound, but I’ll throw in another suggestion or two just to make things complicated:
Porter-Cable’s model # PCB270TS is a belt-driven (according to the website) saw with an everyday price of $599 at Lowe’s that goes on sale for $500 all the time (at least in my local store). I have a co-worker that LOVES his, and I probably would have gotten one for myself if my wife didn’t allow me to “invest” in a Powermatic.
I did a search for the Craftsman 21833 and it showed up as $470 on sale, which makes it a more compelling purchase, except that it appears to be (again, I’m going by the website specs) a direct-drive saw. My opinion is that belt-driven saws are always going to be smoother (all other factors being equal, which I’ll admit is rarely the case).
If space is really tight, it’s ABSOLUTELY worth the time to build a really tricked-out multipurpose enclosure for a smaller saw. You can have a huge table that functions as a table saw top AND a work table; if you want to go a step further, you can get an Biesemeyer or Accu-Fence kit. I had this setup for ten years with a very small Craftsman benchtop saw at its heart and it was fantastic… took a week to build and dial in, but completely worth it.
Jcc
This topic strikes close to home, as I recently did a table saw purchase myself.
The portables (job site saws) were a big turn off for me. I just couldn’t justify spending $400+ on a big hunk of plastic. That being said, there’s a VERY nice Craftsman Professional portable table saw that is actually a rebranded Ryobi, which Sears regularly sells for $300 or less. I believe the part number is 21828. This is not the cheapie portables that Sears normally sells in the $150-$250 range.
This saw is also made in Taiwan, rather than China.
Craftsman also has a more expensive jobsite saw (part number 21829) which looks similar, but the housing is metal, not plastic. That one is also a rebranded Ryobi, made in Taiwan, but retails for about $600.
For me, I actually purchased 21829, and returned it. I liked the quality, and the fit and finish, but I needed table-space more than I needed portability. The problem is, my only options were the Craftsman 21833 described in the original post, the Ridgid 4512 which is the identical saw (just painted orange), or the Porter Cable saw which is sold at Lowe’s.
The Porter Cable saw supposedly works great, but reviewers complain that the inner gears are made of plastic and are cheap, and that replacement parts for the saw are almost impossible to obtain because the thing is made by some Taiwanese company for Porter-Cable. However, the Porter-Cable saw is the only hybrid saw among all three which is made in Taiwan, rather than the PRC.
What I ended up doing was buying a brand new in the box Craftsman table saw from 1995 on Craigslist which had literally been left sitting in the back of the seller’s garage for 15+ years. The table surface, the housing, and pieces of the stand had some rust, but it was nothing a little wD-40 and spraypaint wouldn’t cure. I bought a Craftsman Align-a-Rip fence for $119.00 off the Sears PartsDirect website, and now I have one killer table saw which is Made in USA and is entirely made of metal.
Fred
I picked up the R4510 (the portable version) with a HF coupon for about $300. Space savings, fully assembled on the cart, mine was aligned just fine, and the lifetime warranty all factored in. It has a 30″ rip capacity so not perfect for sheet goods, but I have a track saw anyway.
I looked at every table saw Sears, Lowe’s, & HD had on display and was thoroughly disappointed with the portables. This was before Lowe’s carried Bosch table saws, but either way, I couldn’t afford a hybrid and was about ready to call it when HD redesigned the 4510. The original cart was most of what turned me off of it but that was the biggest change to the new version. I’d buy it again instead of any hybrid or other portables on the market, except Bosch’s newest with the gravity rise stand.
John
I have the Craftsman saw and love it. I added a Bench Dog cast iron router table extension to the saw which gave me a lot of added functionality without sacrificing any extra space.
When cutting thick hard woods I do wish the saw had a little more power. I already use a thin kerf blade which helps, but you can still bog down the motor. The motor is capable of running on 240v or 120v, and re-wiring it to run off of 240v to see if that helps has been on my list of things to do sometime soon.
pedro jesus flores jimenez
me interesa comunicarme con algun acesor de ventas que sepa español. para saber como comprar la cierra circular, sobre costo del articulo y gastos de envio,
Stuart
Nosotros no vendemos nada.
Jet
Craftsman